CT2765

Thursday, 29 April 2010

“Tolerance” is a feel-good buzzword in our society, but I fear people have forgotten what it means. Many folks are proud of their “tolerance” for gays, working women, Tibetan monks in cute orange outfits, or blacks sitting at the front of the bus. But what they really mean is that they consider such things to be completely appropriate parts of their society, and are not bothered by them in the slightest. That, however, isn’t “tolerance.”

Saturday, 6 March 2010

The work of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) represents the consensus of the international scientific community on climate change science. We recognize the IPCC as the world's most reliable source of information on climate change and its causes, and we endorse its method of achieving this consensus. Despite increasing consensus on the science underpinning predictions of global climate change, doubts have been expressed recently about the need to mitigate the risks posed by global climate change. We do not consider such doubts justified.

The balance of the scientific evidence demands effective steps now to avert damaging changes to Earth's climate.

In effect, whilst dissenting voices were recognised apparently they were not allowed to influence the consensus.

Unfortunately, the Climategate scandal has raised some questions with respect to the methods by which that consensus was reached and is being defended. Whilst suspicion isn’t proof of guilt this inevitably casts some doubt over the consensus itself.

There appears to be sufficient doubt to warrant the investigations as cited above. We need to wait until those investigations have reached a conclusion. Only then will the reliability of the IPCC processes and findings be fully understood.

"If the study confirms what the UN has been telling us - that global warming is real and man made and really happening - that would be great. But the scepticism is much more on the actual impacts and what we are doing," he said. "Just like other serious problems we should not magnify global warming for affect."